CHARM Oral History Transcript Collection

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  Interview with Paul H. Perkins

  Paul H. Perkins

  Oral history; First of two interviews conducted with Paul H. Perkins, conducted on February 11, 2005 at Mitchell Memorial Library, Mississippi State University.

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  Interview with William M. Bost

  William Marlin Bost

  Oral history; Interview with William M. Bost, conducted on July 10, 2002 at Mitchell Memorial Library, Mississippi State University. Dr. Bost was born in Ecru, Pontotoc County, Mississippi, in 1924 and grew up on a farm. After serving in the United States Navy in World War II, Bost attended Mississippi State University and received his B.S. in General Agriculture in1949. He began his career as a Veterans Home Farm Training Instructor and then joined the Mississippi Cooperative Extension Service in 1951, serving as assistant county agent, district agent, associate director and finally director in 1962. Bost spent a sabbatical earning the M.S. in Extension Administration from Cornell University (1959) and then took night classes to earn a PhD in Administration of Higher Education from the University of Mississippi (1970). Among the honors awarded to William M. Bost during his career are two USDA Superior Service awards, the Distinguished Service Award from the National Association of County Agricultural Agents, Outstanding Mississippian Award, and selection as the 1980 Progressive Farmer Man of the Year. The Bost Extension Building was named for Bost when he retired in1981 after 30 years with the University. Subjects discussed in the oral history include agricultural extension work, projects and accomplishments of the MSU Cooperative Extension Service, the Bost Extension Center, rural and economic development in Mississippi, and changes in the practice and economics of agriculture and its related industries in Mississippi.

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  Interview with Joe Cardwell

  Joe Thomas Cardwell

  Oral history; Interview conducted with Joe Thomas Cardwell, conducted on July 30, 2002 at Mitchell Memorial Library, Mississippi State University. Cardwell, an MSU dairy chemist and dairy foods processing technologist, was born in Vernon, Texas in 1922 and grew up on a cotton farm. He graduated from Odell High School and then went to work for Texas Tech University, where he also received his B.S. and M.S. degrees. He completed PhD in Animal Science and Food Science and Techology at North Carolina State University. He came to Mississippi State University in 1952 where he was involved in teaching, research and extension work in dairy manufacturing, which including working in the cheese plant. Cardwell also helped develop the graduate program through the Doctor of Philosophy degree. He also worked as a USDA dairy products grader and inspector and as an organoleptologist (taster) for food products developed at MSU. He was a member of the American Dairy Science Association Southern Section from which he received the Honor Award, and also received a number of awards for outstanding teaching. After retirement, he served as a volunteer tour guide for the MSU Edam cheese operation.

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  Interview with Rodney Foil

  Robert Rodney Foil

  Oral history; Interview conducted with Rodney Foil on June 18 and 25, 2002 at Mitchell Memorial Library, Mississippi State University. Robert Rodney Foil was born in Bogalusa, Louisiana in 1934. He received his B.S. (1956) and M.S. (1960) in Forestry at Louisiana State University and completed his PhD in Forestry at Duke University in 1965. Foil also served two years in the Army and was for a short period, an industrial forester in Georgia. Before coming to Mississippi State University (MSU) in 1969, Foil worked for Louisiana State University, first at the North Louisiana Hill Farm Experiment Station and then as a statewide extension specialist in forestry at the LSU Baton Rouge campus. he also received his B.S. and M.S. degrees. He served at MSU as Head of the Forestry Department (1969-1971), Associate Dean and Head of Forestry (1971-1973), Dean of Forestry (1973-1978) and associate director of MAFES (1973-1978), Director of Experiment Station (1978-1986), and Vice-President for the Division of Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine from 1986 until his retirement in 1999. General topics covered in the interview include the impact of mechanization on agriculture, impact of computers on farming, biotechnology, the Mississippi catfish industry, freshwater shrimp research, aquaculture, the impact of privatization on farming operations, environmental issues in agriculture, and academic and social changes at MSU.